Monthly Archives: March 2011

Our Ridley rowers spent their March Break on the West Coast training. Exceptional weather with a fair bit of sunshine and idyllic water conditions made for a successful Spring Break training camp, here is what Director of Rowing Mr. Dorland had to say about the trip:

On March 18th nineteen athletes (12 boys & 7 girls), three coaches and one parent travelled to Seattle, WA where we spent the weekend hosted generously by the rowers and families of Lakeside High School. Sunday we travelled over to Victoria on the Clipper and then up to Shawnigan Lake School where we ate, trained, ate, trained, ate, slept, trained and ate some more for the next week!

It was an excellent opportunity to jump-start the on-water rowing season with perfect rowing conditions and great racing against Shawnigan. We now resume our training on the waters of Martindale Pond and hope for warm weather and calm water. Check out our web-site ridleyrowing.com for more photographs and video of the training camp!

This is an image of the SkyWheel, a ferris wheel located in Niagara Falls, Ont., home of one of the world’s largest sources of hydroelectric power. "This ride entertains thousands of people all year long, as they view the waterfalls from high above," says photographer Elaine Wong. "The SkyWheel uses bright, moving lights to help create entertainment for those who ride it. The visual impact of the motion and the lights also helps to contribute to the emotional energy of a visit to Niagara Falls," she says.

The Grade 10 Media Arts students are unveiling their new photography exhibit today in the Matthews Library. The images have been submitted to PhotoSensitive, a group of photographers who tackle social issues through black and white images. Last year, the Grade 10 Media Arts students participated in the student version of ‘Cancer Connections: Through a Young Lens’. This year they contributed to the student version of The Energy Project, a photographic initiative exploring facets of energy – its production, distribution and consumption as well as aspects of our daily lives that are directly affected by energy. The photographs will be in the library today, with the official opening reception happening Friday evening at 7:30 p.m. The exhibit will be on display until April 8th, so be sure to check it out!

This Exit sign, small as it may look, likely uses huge amounts of electricity because it is never turned off, says photographer Emma Hudson. "Even though sometimes we take things like this for granted, we need to remember that even the smallest things that we do – like turning off the lights – are enough to make an impact."This image captures the power and energy transferred from the player to the ice in an ice hockey stop, says photographer Nick Sproviero. "Sometimes this image would never even cross our mind when watching a hockey game because we're distracted by other things. Without this transfer of energy, the game would not be possible."

On March 10th seven Ridley students accompanied by Mr. Nickerson departed on a 10 day journey to southern Spain to see and experience the distinctive cultural character of this ancient country. Here are some highlights from their time in Spain:

Our first trip after landing in Mandrid was a journey through the Castilla-La Mancha province featuring vineyards, groves of olive trees and windmill-crested hilltops that brought to mind the wanderings of Don Quixote in the early 17th century. We stopped at a 15th century vento, or medieval fortified hostel that housed travelers such as Cervantes as he made his way from the south of Spain to Madrid. After stretching our legs, we loaded up and made our way further south through the mountains to the province of Andalucia. The rows of olive trees grew larger and stretched to the horizon, and the windmills on hilltops transform from ancient relics into enormous, sleek power generators. By the early afternoon we reached Cordoba.

The bridge that took us across a swollen river to the renowned Mesquita was built by the Romans who founded the city in 152 BCE. The Mesquita (mosque) was built by the Muslims who invaded the south of Spain and established Cordoba as the capital of the Iberian peninsula in the 8th century CE. What makes this structure fascinating is the fact that the Christians arrived in the 15th century and did not destroy the mosque, but added a beautiful 16th century gothic-inspired cathedral to the middle of the enormous mosque interior. After a couple of hours spend wandering about the Mesquita and the surrounding market, we departed for Seville.

Seville, like most cities in Spain, has an old city that was once entirely surrounded with fortified walls, and our hotel was located near the ring road that runs outside the city walls. Also founded by the Romans, Seville was once the key city for trade with the American colonies in the 15th century. The old town centre features a beautiful alcazar built in the Moorish style and a gothic cathedral. We spent a rainy afternoon touring these sites, the town bull ring and wandering through the narrow streets of what was once the old Jewish centre, then we departed for the coast.

After a noisy night, we headed out for a day trip to Morocco via the Straight of Gibraltar. The ferry took us to the Spanish town of Cueta, then we crossed the border into the real Africa where cows and goats wandered the streets and average income dropped to developing world levels. Our destination was Tetouan, a hillside town that featured an old, crowded market where you could buy clothes, freshly plucked chickens and lime for painting your house. The first stop was a carpet emporium filled with traditional Moroccan and Bedouin floor coverings, then we had a traditional Moroccan meal in a restaurant brimming with clashing patterns. The final stop was a herbalist lecture/sales pitch for everything from acne cream to ginseng roots. The noise, smells and distinctive feel of the Moroccan market made a strong impression on many of the travelers who remarked that this excursion into Africa was the highlight of the trip!

First Boys BasketballThe senior boys basketball team won 2 quarters and tied one in the OFSAA final in North Bay but unfortunately lost the thread in the 2nd quarter when they were outscored 21-4 to lose 61-47 to a very talented and aggressive Forester Collegiate from Windsor. Ridley led 9-7 at the end of the first quarter but some key misses, questionable calls and a lack of focus disrupted the Tiger attack early in the 2nd quarter and the team never really recovered. With 3 minutes remaining in the game, Ridley was down only 9 points but that was as close as they would get. Cooper Rigg had 18 and Kristers Moisejs 11 points, both playing in their final game as Ridley Tigers led the scoring tonight. Special mention must also go to the other graduating seniors Jimmy Chueng, Kutiba Senusi, and Christian Ho. The Tigers finish the season with an overall record of 21-8.

First Boys Hockey

• Won the CISAA Silver Medal losing the championship series 2-0 to Nichols School

• March 4 CISAA Final at Nichols (L 5-1)

• March 7 CISAA Final at Ridley (L 6-5 in overtime)

Senior Girls Gymnastics

• Finished second in the overall competition at the CISAA Championship meet

• Level 2 Girls’ Gymnastics Team won their division at the Sir Winston Churchill Invitational

In a 3-school meet at Sir Winston Churchill yesterday, Girls’ Gymnastics put in a great day of competition. In addition to winning the Level 2 Team Championship, the following girls had top-3 finishes:

Level 2:

Emma Hudson – 1st on bars and beam

Mariana Hinestrosa – 1st on floor

Kennedy Farr – 2nd on vault and beam

Morgan Aleven – 2nd on floor, 3rd on beam

Caroline Birkenshaw – 3rd on floor and bars

Shayda Shivafard – 3rd on beam

Level 3:

Faith Bell (LS) – 2nd on floor and bars

Stefanie Grigorovsky – 3rd on floor

Everyone put in a great day, with most having at least one personal-best routine. Next up – OFSAA qualifier after March Break.

Swimming

The Senior Swimming team won five OFSAA medals. Stephanie Lam brought home the gold in Breaststroke, Jesus Serrana Cendejas won a Silver in the 100M IM, the Senior girls Freestyle relay made up of Bethany Pile, Savannah Cowherd, Stephanie Lam and Jessica Grys won a Silver (losing only by a mere .15 seconds) and the girls relay team, Savannah Cowherd, Bethany Pile, Stephanie Lam and Erica Balcombe won a bronze for the medley relay. Well done swimmers! The swimming team finished 23rd of 282 teams in the province.

First Girls Hockey
First Girls Hockey team lost the CISAA Semi Final to the eventual championship winners Bishop Strachan. It was a hard fought battle with the final score being 5-2. Sarah Robichaud put the Tigers on the board first, assisted by Eleeza Cox, and Kara Power. The Bobcats were able to score twice in the second period to take the lead 2-1. The Tigers had a number of scoring chances, but were not able to put the puck away. Fueled by momentum, BSS put two more goals on the board midway through the third period. With over three minutes remaining, goaltender Karlyle Robinson sprinted to the bench for an extra attacker. The Tigers were able to score on the man-advantage to cut the Bobcat’s lead in half. The Tigers continued the to gamble with the empty net, but unfortunately BSS was able to score, putting the CISAA finals out of reach for Ridley. Congratulations to the girls on a very respectable season. The coaching staff wishes to give an extra thanks to our seven graduating seniors for their heart and leadership, and entertainment on long bus rides…

First Volleyball

• Lost CISAA Quarter Final to Trinity College School 3-2

U16 Boys Hockey

• Lost CISAA Quarter Final to Lakefield College 4-2

Ontario Ergometer Championships

The Ontario Erogometer Championships were held in the Ridley College Field House on Sunday. We had 5 rowers in the Top Ten, and many personal best times (compared to the Canadian Indoors or the February 6 “test”).

The Lower School students in Grades 5-8 held a talent show in the Mandeville Theatre this week. There were musicians, singers and dancers – 12 acts in total. First place in the junior division was awarded to Madeleine B. and Liana B. who performed a duet and second place was a tie between Ally C. who performed ‘Defying Gravity’ from the musical Wicked and Tony N. and Callum C. who performed Green Day’s ‘Boulevard of Broken Dreams’ on the piano and drums. For the senior division first place went to Gracie L. who wrote and performed an original song and second place was awarded to the dance group of Joseph A., Tamara B., Alyssa E. and Siena V. Check out the talented students in action:

The Ontario Erogometer Championships were held in the Ridley College Field House on Sunday. We had 5 rowers in the Top Ten, and many personal best times (compared to the Canadian Indoors or the February 6 “test”).